Therapeutic bed for inversely suspending/standing human body

ABSTRACT

An automatic therapeutic bed for inversely suspending/standing a human body includes an intermediate member of the therapeutic bed, a backrest of the therapeutic bed rotatably connected to an end of the intermediate member for accommodating an upper body of the patient, a footrest of the therapeutic bed rotatably connected to another end of the intermediate member for accommodating a lower body of the patient, a plurality of frames provided under the intermediate member, the backrest and the footrest and forming a bed angle adjustment mechanism, a drive means for driving the bed angle adjustment mechanism formed of the frames to change the angles and positions of the intermediate member, the backrest and the footrest of the therapeutic bed, shoulder pads provided at an end of the backrest for supporting shoulders of the patient, and a fastening means provided at an end of the footrest for fastening ankles of the patient.

This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/462,982 filed Jan. 14, 2000 now abandoned, which is a 371 ofPCT/JP98/02420, filed Jun. 2, 1998.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related to a therapeutic bed for chiropracticor medical treatment of a human body, or protecting a human body fromdisease by inversely suspending/standing the human body while holdingthe human body on the bed not to fall down.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The backbone of a human body is formed of a large number ofcylindrically shaped vertebrae where each vertebra is connected to theadjacent vertebra by a disc of cartilage. Hernia may be caused when thedisc cartilages are slipped and compressed or injured, resulting insevere back ache and requiring chiropractic or other treatment as wellas rehabilitation. To be used in such a situation, in the past,therapeutic tools are known such as health hanging tools for home useand expanding machines for hospital use. Such therapeutic tools,however, are difficult to use for a long period of time or difficult tooperate for a person who has diminished physical strength, or who are inpoor health or confined to bed.

For such conventional tools, an improvement has been proposed where amotor is employed therein to easily operate the tool. For example,Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-182000 shows a therapeutictool for inversely hanging and suspending a human body by a winch.However, such a conventional tool is disadvantageous in that only theinverse suspension mode is available, while it is relatively large andexpensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide atherapeutic bed which is capable of overcoming the drawbacks in theconventional therapeutic tools, thereby inversely hanging or standing ahuman body with the maximum angle for expanding the human body.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a therapeuticbed for stretching abdominal muscles and back muscles while thetherapeutic bed is in the substantially horizontal direction by up/downmoving a backrest of the therapeutic bed and stretching knees by up/downmoving a footrest of the therapeutic bed.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a therapeuticbed for recovering flexibility in intervertebral discs that have beencompressed and forming a healthy body, and easily achieving an inversesuspending or inverse standing treatment even for a weak or sick person.

For achieving such objectives, the therapeutic bed of the presentinvention includes an intermediate member of the therapeutic bed, abackrest of the therapeutic bed rotatably connected to an end of theintermediate member for accommodating an upper body of the patient, afootrest of the therapeutic bed rotatably connected to another end ofthe intermediate member for accommodating a lower body of the patient, aplurality of frames provided under the intermediate member, the backrestand the footrest and forming a bed angle adjustment mechanism, a drivemeans for driving the bed angle adjustment mechanism formed of theframes to change the angles and positions of the intermediate member,the backrest and the footrest of the therapeutic bed, shoulder padsprovided at an end of the backrest for supporting shoulders of thepatient, and a fastening means provided at an end of the footrest forfastening ankles of the patient.

In another aspect, the intermediate member and the footrest areintegrally formed to establish an intermediate and lower body support,and the backrest is rotatably connected to the intermediate and lowerbody support. In a further aspect of the present invention, twohydraulic cylinders are provided, one is used for driving the backrestwhile the other is used for driving the intermediate and lower bodysupport.

According to the therapeutic bed of the present invention, the pluralmembers of the bed are first extended to form a flat and horizontal bed.A patient lies on the bed with the shoulders contacting the shoulderpads at one end of the bed and the ankles being fastened by the anklefastening belt at another end of the bed. By rotating the therapeuticbed through the drive mechanism and sustaining in a desired inverseposition, the patient can be inversely suspended on the bed.

Then, by controlling the hydraulic cylinder, the therapeutic bed isreturned to the flat and horizontal state so that the patient can restquietly on the bed. Further, in addition to inversely suspending thepatient, the therapeutic bed of the present invention can performvarious other functions as well. By rotatably moving the headrest,footrest or intermediate and lower support of the bed in an up/downdirection, various health improvement actions can be achieved such asstretching and strengthening abdominal muscle and back muscle of thepatient.

The therapeutic bed can be used protectively by a healthy person forimproving strength of abdominal and back muscle so as to avoid sufferingfrom back pain such as hernia. In addition, since the therapeutic bed ofthe present invention can be operated with use of keys or switch nearby,it is especially suitable for treatment of a weak and/or sick person ora bedridden person. The therapeutic bed of the present invention isespecially effective for healing a back pain such as hernia orgastroptosis by stretching the back.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a therapeutic bed 10 for inverselysuspending/standing a human body in the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the inversely suspending therapeutic bed10 in the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the inversely suspendingtherapeutic bed 10 in the first embodiment in which a backrest 3, anintermediate member 4 and a footrest 14 are respectively aligned on thesame horizontal surface of the bed similar to an ordinary bed.

FIG. 4(a) is an enlarged cross sectional view showing a supportstructure 12 in which an end of a hook member 16 is engaged with ashoulder pad 8, and FIG. 4(b) is a front view of the shoulder pad 8.

FIG. 5 is a partially cut-out enlarged side view showing an anklefastening belt 7 and associated components in the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing the therapeutic bed 10 of the presentinvention where a patient is inversely suspended on the bed.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a therapeutic bed 30 for inverselysuspending/standing a human body in the second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the inversely suspending therapeutic bed 30 inthe second embodiment of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a side view showing the inversely suspending therapeutic bed30 in the second embodiment wherein a backrest 35 and an intermediatemember 34 are respectively aligned on the same horizontal surface of thebed similar to an ordinary bed.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the shown in the inverselysuspending therapeutic bed 30 wherein a backrest 35 and an intermediateand lower body support 34 are shown in the inversed position.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing the therapeutic bed 30 of the presentinvention in the inverse condition of FIG. 10 where a patient isinversely standing on the bed.

FIG. 12 is a side view showing a therapeutic bed 40 for inverselysuspending/standing a human body in the third embodiment of the presentinvention wherein the therapeutic bed is suitably angled for stretchingthe abdominal muscle of the patient.

FIG. 13 is a side view of the inversely suspending therapeutic bed 40 inthe third embodiment of FIG. 12 wherein the therapeutic bed is suitablyangled for stretching the back muscle of the patient.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The embodiments of the present invention will be described in detailwith reference to the accompanying drawings. FIGS. 1-6 show thetherapeutic bed for inversely suspending/standing a patient (hereinafter“therapeutic bed”) in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows one of the examples of various forms available in atherapeutic bed 10 of the present invention. In the first embodiment,the therapeutic bed 10 has a support frame 1 having a trapezoidal shape.The support frame 1 is made of L-shaped light steel or high strengthsynthetic resin or the like, and is assembled by welding or screwingeach component to form the frame to fully support the therapeutic bedand other members.

An intermediate member 4 of the therapeutic bed 10 is provided on theframe 1 in a manner rotatable about a shaft F. At one end (right side ofFIG. 1) of the intermediate member 4, a backrest 3 is rotatablyconnected while the other end (left side of FIG. 1) of the intermediatemember 4, a footrest 14 is rotatably connected. A plurality of frames 6are respectively provided under the intermediate member 4, backrest 3and the footrest 14.

The frames 6 are connected with one another to form a bed angleadjustment mechanism and are connected to an upper end of a hydrauliccylinder 2. The base (lower end) of the hydraulic cylinder 2 is mountedon the bottom part of the support frame 1. By extension or contractionmovements of the hydraulic cylinder 2, the intermediate member 4,backrest, 3 and footrest 14 of the therapeutic bed 10 are driven via thebed angle adjustment mechanism, thereby creating various positions ofthe therapeutic bed 10.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, shoulder pads 8 are provided at both sides ofan upper part of the backrest 3. The shoulder pads 8 are rotatable aswell as being fixed in predetermined orientations through a mechanismshown in FIG. 4. Namely, as shown in FIG. 4, a support structure 12 isprovided at the top end of the backrest 3 for supporting a hook member16.

A spring 18 is provided between the support structure 12 and the hookmember 16 in a manner shown in FIG. 4. When pulling a handle 20 of thehook member 16 in an outward direction, the end of the hook member 16 isdisengaged from the shoulder pad 8. When releasing the handle 20, by theforce of the spring 18, the end of the hook member 16 is engaged withthe shoulder pad 8.

Accordingly, when the end of the hook member 16 is fitted in a firstreceptacle 8 a (FIG. 4(b)) of the shoulder pad 8, the shoulder pad 8 ismaintained in the orientation as shown by the solid line of FIG. 4(a).In this situation, the shoulder pads 8 are in the same flat surface ofthe backrest 3 and are not used as shoulder supports. When the end ofthe hook member 16 is fitted in a second receptacle 8 b (FIG. 4(b)) ofthe shoulder pad 8, the shoulder pad 8 is maintained in the orientationas shown by the dotted line of FIG. 4(a). In this situation, theshoulder pads 8 are maintained in a direction perpendicular to thesurface of the backrest 3 for supporting the patient's shoulders.

As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the therapeutic bed 10 includes handrails 22 atboth sides of the intermediate member 4 and a safety belt 9 connected tothe both sides. A remote controller 24 is attached to one of thehandrails 22 and is connected to the hydraulic cylinder 2 through asignal cable (not shown). By pressing keys on the remote controller 24,a user can control the operation of the hydraulic cylinder 2, therebychanging angles and forms of the therapeutic bed 10.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, at the far end of the footrest 4, thetherapeutic bed 10 includes a pair of ankle fastening belts 7. Anexample of ankle fastening belt 7 is shown in FIG. 5. In this example,the ankle fastening belt 7 is connected to one end of a chain 26 whilethe other end of the chain 26 is attached the edge of the footrest 4through a fixture 28.

The operation of the therapeutic bed 10 of the present invention isdescribed in the following. When the therapeutic bed 10 is in thecondition as shown in FIG. 4, by manipulating the hook member 16 throughthe handle 20, the shoulder pads 8 are fixed on the bed with a rightangle relative to the backrest 3. A patient sits on the intermediatemember 4 of the therapeutic bed 10 in the same manner as sitting on achair. The safety belt 9 on the intermediate member 4 is fastened on thepatient.

With use of the remote controller 24, extraction or contractionmovements of the hydraulic cylinder 2 and the associated movements ofthe bed angle adjustment mechanism of the frame 6 are controlled. Thus,the backrest 3, intermediate member 4, and footrest 14 of the bed 10 areextended to be in the same horizontal surface as shown in FIG. 3. Thepatient's ankles are fastened by the fastening belts 7, and the patientlays flat on the bed 10.

Then, by controlling the extraction and contraction movements of thehydraulic cylinder 2 and the frames 6 forming the bed angle adjustmentmechanism, with use of the remote controller 24, the therapeutic bed 10changes its position in the manner shown in FIG. 6. In the example ofFIG. 6, the therapeutic bed 10 is inversely rotated about 80 degreesfrom the horizontal state so that the footrest 14 is positioned higherthat the backrest 3.

In this condition, since the patient is inversely suspended on the bedin a head standing manner, a plurality of vertebrae of the patient arestretched, and the slips of the cartilages are corrected, as well as thecompression of the cartilage between the vertebrae is released. As aresult, the cartilages that have been compressed and/or injured becauseof the weight of the patient are relieved from these problems, and bythe long treatment with use of the therapeutic bed of the presentinvention, new cartilages are reproduced, thereby completely curing thedisease such as hernia.

Bloodstreams of the patient may be adversely affected if the patient isinversely suspended in the manner of FIG. 6 for a long period of time.Therefore, within an appropriate time, the patient can operate theremote controller 24 to return the therapeutic bed 10 to the originalstate of FIG. 3. The patient can rest quietly as long as necessary onthe bed 10 which is horizontally laying as shown in FIG. 3, therebyavoiding the cartilages from immediately receiving the weight of thepatient. By repeating the above noted procedures for a long time, thecartilages can be completely recovered and reproduced.

Further, weakened abdominal muscle of the patient are stretched andstrengthened by repeatedly raising and falling the backrest 3 of thetherapeutic bed 10. Moreover, weakened leg muscle are also stretched andstrengthened by repeatedly changing the position of the footrest 4between the horizontal position and the lower position.

FIGS. 7-11 show the therapeutic bed in the second embodiment of thepresent invention. FIG. 7 shows one of the examples of many variationsavailable in a therapeutic bed 30 of the present invention. In thesecond embodiment, the therapeutic bed 30 has a support frame 31 havinga rectangular shape. The support frame 31 is made of L-shaped lightsteel or high strength synthetic resin or the like, and is assembled bywelding or screwing each component to form the support frame to fullysupport the therapeutic bed and other members.

An intermediate and lower body support 34 of the therapeutic bed 30 isprovided on the frame 31 in a manner rotatable about a shaft A supportedby bearing D. At one end (right side of FIG. 7) of the intermediate andlower body support 34, a backrest 35 is rotatably connected. Thebackrest 35 is so structured to be able to rotate about a shaft C whichis supported by bearing B, as will be described later.

A plurality of frames 36 are respectively provided under theintermediate and lower body support 34 and the backrest 35. The frames36 are connected with one another to establish a bed angle adjustmentmechanism. The bed angle adjustment mechanism formed of the frames 36 isconnected to an upper end of a hydraulic cylinder 2 (drive means). Thebase (lower end) of the hydraulic cylinder 2 is mounted on the bottompart of the support frame 31. By extension and contraction movements ofthe hydraulic cylinder 2, the intermediate and lower body support 34 andthe backrest 35 of the therapeutic bed 30 are driven through the angleadjustment mechanism formed of the frames 36, thereby creating variouspositions of the therapeutic bed 30.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, shoulder pads 8 are provided at both sidesof an upper part of the backrest 35. The shoulder pads 8 are rotatableas well as being fixed in predetermined orientations by the mechanismsimilar to the hook member 6 and the support structure 12 describedabove with respect to the first embodiment. Thus, the backrest 35 issustained in perpendicular to the backrest 35 or laid flat on the samesurface of the backrest 35.

As shown in FIG. 7, the therapeutic bed 30 further includes handrails 22at both sides of the intermediate and lower body support 34 close to thebackrest 35 and a safety belt 9 connected to the both sides. A remotecontroller 24 is attached to one of the handrails 22 and is connected tothe hydraulic cylinder 2 through a signal cable (not shown). By pressingkeys on the remote controller 24, a user can control the operation ofthe hydraulic cylinder, thereby changing the angle and position of thetherapeutic bed 10.

Further, similar to the first embodiment noted above, at the far end ofthe intermediate and lower body support 34 of the therapeutic bed 30, apair of ankle fastening belts 7 are attached thereto. An example ofankle fastening belt 7 is shown in FIG. 5. The ankle fastening belt 7 isconnected to one end of a chain 26 while the other end of the chain 26is attached to the edge of the intermediate and lower body support 34through a fixture 28.

The operation of the therapeutic bed 30 of the present invention isdescribed in the following. When the therapeutic bed 30 is in thecondition as shown in FIG. 7, the shoulder pads 8 are fixed on the bedwith a right angle relative to the backrest 35 in the manner shown inFIG. 10. The waist and lower body of the patient are placed on theintermediate and lower body support 34 in FIG. 7. The safety belt 9 onthe intermediate and lower body support 34 is fastened on the patient.

With use of the remote controller 24, extension and contractionmovements of the hydraulic cylinder 2 and the associated movements ofthe bed angle adjustment mechanism are controlled. Thus, the therapeuticbed 30 changes its angle and shape in the manner shown in FIGS. 10 and11 in which the therapeutic bed 30 is rotated and inversely sustained atan angle of about 80 degrees from the horizontal plane so that theintermediate and lower body support 34 is positioned higher that thebackrest 35. As a consequence, the patient is inversely suspended in ahead standing manner on the therapeutic bed 30.

Since the patient is inversely suspended on the therapeutic bed, thevertebra of the patient are stretched and the cartilage slip can becorrected as well as the compression of the cartilage between thevertebrae is released. Further, by controlling the hydraulic cylinder 2and the frames 36, the therapeutic bed 30 can be returned to the flatand horizontal state of FIG. 9 so that the patient can rest quietly onthe bed 30. Further, weakened abdominal muscle and back muscle of thepatient are stretched and strengthened by repeatedly raising (FIG. 9)and falling (FIG. 7) the backrest 35 of the therapeutic bed 30.

FIGS. 12 and 13 show the therapeutic bed in the third embodiment of thepresent invention. In the third embodiment, a therapeutic bed 40 isconfigured by a backrest 43 and an intermediate and lower body support44 and is supported on a support frame 41 having a rectangular shape,which is the same as the therapeutic bed 30 in the third embodiment inthe foregoing. However, the therapeutic bed 40 is different from thetherapeutic bed 30 in that it has only one set of bearing E forrotatably supporting the bed 40 and two hydraulic cylinders 2A and 2B.

In the therapeutic bed 40 configured in this manner, not only thepatient can be inversely suspended but various forms and angles of thebed can be made as well. Namely, with use of the remote controller 24,the hydraulic cylinders 2A and 2B are independently controlled from oneanother, thereby independently changing the positions and angles of thebackrest 43 and intermediate and lower body support 44 through theframes 46. Therefore, the therapeutic bed 40 can treat the disease suchas hernia of the patient and can stretch and strengthen the weakenedmuscle of the patient with further freedom and flexibility.

As described in the foregoing, the therapeutic bed of the presentinvention, the plural members of the bed are first extended to form aflat and horizontal bed. A patient lies on the bed with the shoulderscontacting the shoulder pads at one end of the bed and the ankles beingfastened by the ankle fastening belt at another end of the bed. Byrotating the therapeutic bed through the drive mechanism and sustainingin a desired inverse position, the patient can be inversely suspended onthe bed.

Then, by controlling the hydraulic cylinder, the therapeutic bed isreturned to the flat and horizontal state so that the patient can restquietly on the bed. Further, in addition to inversely suspending thepatient, the therapeutic bed of the present invention can performvarious other functions as well. By rotatably moving the headrest,footrest or intermediate and lower support of the bed in an up/downdirection, various health improvement actions can be achieved such asstretching and strengthening abdominal muscle and back muscle of thepatient.

The therapeutic bed can be used protectively by a healthy person forimproving strength of abdominal and back, muscle so as to avoidsuffering from back pain such as hernia. In addition, since thetherapeutic bed of the present invention can be operated with use ofkeys or switch nearby, it is especially suitable for treatment of a weakand/or sick person or a bedridden person. The therapeutic bed of thepresent invention is especially effective for healing a back pain suchas hernia or gastroptosis by stretching the back.

Although only a preferred embodiment is specifically illustrated anddescribed herein, it will be appreciated that many modifications andvariations of the present invention are possible in light of the aboveteachings and within the purview of the appended claims withoutdeparting the spirit and intended scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A therapeutic bed for inverselysuspending/standing a patient, comprising: an intermediate member of thetherapeutic bed; a backrest of the therapeutic bed rotatable connectedto an end of the intermediate member for accommodating an upper body ofthe patient; a footrest of the therapeutic bed rotatable connected toanother end of the intermediate member for accommodating a lower body ofthe patient; a plurality of frames provided under the intermediatemember, the backrest and the footrest and forming a bed angle adjustmentmechanism; a drive means for driving the bed angle adjustment mechanismformed of the frames to change the angles and positions of theintermediate member, the backrest and the footrest of the therapeuticbed; shoulder pads provided at an end of the backrest for supportingshoulders of the patient; and a fastening means provided at an end ofthe footrest for fastening ankles of the patient.
 2. A therapeutic bedas defined in claim 1, further comprising handrails provided on bothsides of the intermediate member for being grasped by the patient andfor preventing the patient from falling down from the bed.
 3. Atherapeutic bed as defined in claim 2, further comprising a remotecontroller provided adjacent to one of the handrails to controlmovements of the drive means for changing the angle and position of atleast one of the intermediate member, the backrest and the footrestthrough the bed angle adjustment mechanism.
 4. A therapeutic bed asdefined in claim 2, further comprising a safety belt on the intermediatemember for fastening on the patient to promote safety when thetherapeutic bed moves.
 5. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 1,wherein the shoulder pads on the backrest take two fixed orientations,one of which is in perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the backrestand the other is in the same direction of the horizontal plane of thebackrest.
 6. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 1, wherein theshoulder pads on the backrest have two receptacles to receive a hooktherein for defining two fixed orientations, one of which is inperpendicular to the horizontal plane of the backrest and the other isin the same direction of the horizontal plane of the backrest.
 7. Atherapeutic bed as defined in claim 1, wherein the drive means iscomprised of a hydraulic cylinder.
 8. A therapeutic bed for inverselysuspending/standing a patient, comprising: an intermediate and lowerbody support of the therapeutic bed for accommodating a lower body ofthe patient; a backrest of the therapeutic bed rotatably connected to anend of the intermediate and lower body support for accommodating anupper body of the patient; a plurality of frames provided under theintermediate and lower body support and the backrest and forming a bedangle adjustment mechanism; a drive means for driving the bed angleadjustment mechanism formed of the frames to change the angles andpositions of the intermediate and lower body support and backrest of thetherapeutic bed; shoulder pads provided at an end of the backrest forsupporting shoulders of the patient; and a fastening means provided atan end of the intermediate and lower body support for fastening anklesof the patient.
 9. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 8, furthercomprising handrails provided on both sides of the intermediate andlower body support for being grasped by the patient and for preventingthe patient from falling down from the bed.
 10. A therapeutic bed asdefined in claim 9, further comprising a remote controller providedadjacent to one of the handrails to control movements of the drive meansfor changing the angle and position of at least one of the intermediateand lower body support and the backrest through the bed angle adjustmentmechanism.
 11. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 9, furthercomprising a safety belt on the intermediate and lower body support forfastening on the patient to promote safety when the therapeutic bedmoves.
 12. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 8, wherein the shoulderpads on the backrest take two fixed orientations, one of which is inperpendicular to the horizontal plane of the backrest and the other isin the same direction of the horizontal plane of the backrest.
 13. Atherapeutic bed as defined in claim 8, wherein the shoulder pads on thebackrest have two receptacles to receive a hook therein for defining twofixed orientations, one of which is in perpendicular to the horizontalplane of the backrest and the other is in the same direction of thehorizontal plane of the backrest.
 14. A therapeutic bed as defined inclaim 8, wherein the drive means is comprised of a hydraulic cylinder.15. A therapeutic bed as defined in claim 8, wherein the drive means iscomprised of two hydraulic cylinders, one is used for driving thebackrest, and the other is used for driving the intermediate and lowerbody support.